Agitating device



Jan. 17, 1939. c. J. SCUDDER AGITATING DEVICE Filed July 9, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet l' INVENTOR llzarlarjJrudder 02% Kora, W

ATTORNEY Jan. 17, 1939. c J. SCUDDER 2,144,127

AGITATING DEVICE Filed July 9, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 17, 1939 UNITED FATENT OFFIE 5 Claims.

This invention relates to a functionally and structurally improved agitating device.

While the invention may be employed in numerous different associations, it is of particular utility in connection with granular materials and is primarily intended to be associated with a vehicle such as a locomotive. Where so employed, it will maintain the sand, or equivalent material used in the sand box, in a friable and proper condition such that under the control of the operator it may readily be distributed.

. Thus it might, with propriety, be said that it is an object of the invention to furnish an agitating device which will maintain material, and especially sand or an equivalent material, in properly usable condition.

A further object of the invention is that of furnishing a unit of this character which will function automatically so that the operator of the locomotive or otherwise will not have to attend to the same.

A further object is that of providing an agitating device which will require in its operation no otherwise usable power. Accordingly no expense will be involved incident to the adoption of the apparatus.

An additional object is that of designing an agitating device which will embody an extremely simple form of construction capable of being manufactured at entirely nominal expense and which, moreover, will not require a redesigning or rebuilding of the receptacle with which it is to be associated.

With these and other objects in mind, reference is had to the attached sheets of drawings, illustrating practical embodiments of the invention and in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a locomotive sand box and showing an agitating apparatus in association therewith;

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional View taken along the lines 22 and in the direction of the arrows of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional View taken along the line 3-3 and in the direction of the arrows of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of one of the units illustrated in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 1, but showing a slightly different method of supporting theagitating apparatus;

Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional view taken along the line i5t3 and in the direction of'the arrows of Fig. 5, and with the jacket and certain of the boiler covering broken away; and

of radially extending knife edge portions l5.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary perspective View of certain of the structure as illustrated especially in Figs. 5 and 6.

Referring primarily to Fig. 1, the numeral Ill indicates a housing which provides the sand box .5 for a locomotive. Obviously this housing may be of any desired configuration and area according to the design of the vehicle or other unit with which it is associated. Suffice it to say that, as shown, the housing preferably includes a base 10 portion, side walls, and a cover portion through which latter an opening I i may be formed. This opening is, of course, normally covered in any desired manner and any number of tubes l2 may extend from the housing to distribute the mate- .15 rial disposed therein; This material is usually sand but may, of course, be of any desired character for distribution in accordance with accepted practice.

It is well appreciated by locomotive engineers that considerable difficulty has heretofore been experienced incident to maintaining the sand or its equivalent in proper friable condition. Ordinarily and incident to the action of moisture and heat, this material tends to pack, or form into lumps or clots. Especially adjacent the center of the sand box or housing, a packing tendency occurs on the part of the material such that it will not properly distribute. By means of the present invention, this packing tendency is completely eliminated and the mass of material is not alone broken up into small readily distributed components, but is also diverted towards the outlets or other distributing means which are employed.

The form of the agitating device shown in Figs.

1 to 4 includes a series of pendlums of such a length that they clear the base of the housing ill and so arranged that they'do not interfere or conflict with each other. Each of these pendulums 4 may include a shank i3 of proper length to which is secured a weighted body It and this body may present adjacent its lower face a series As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the cover portion of housing it! may be formed with a series of openings through whichas shown especially in Fig. 3 the shank I6 of eyelet member I! is extended and a properly substantially air tight connection may be afforded by interposing' washers l8 of rubber or sinular material between the upper and lower face of the housing, the body of the eyelet, and the nut or its equivalent, which secures the shank in position. The central pendulum elements may be suspended from rods or bars l9 having their 5 end portions anchored to the housing In as indicated at 20 and at this time it will be noted that the bodies of these pendulum members clear the lower surface of the housing and do not interfere with each other.

In the form of construction shown in Figs. 5 to '7, the housing supports pairs of bars 2| in a manner similar to that in which the bars l9 are supported. The bars 2| are perforated and receive the hooked ends 22 of the stems or shanks of the pendulums 23. In this form the bodies of the latter members have been shown to include different configuration from that heretofore illustrated. However, it is again to be observed that as in the case of attaching the eyelet I! and the ends of bars I9 that washers 24 or their equivalent are employed to provide for a suitable tight form of connection.

With installations of this nature it is, of course, obvious that under conditions of rest the apparatus will simply remain in the position shown. However, due to the weight of the pendulum and incident to the swaying and other motions of the locomotive or other vehicle with which they are associated, the bodies of the pendulums will push or dig through the sand bed within the housing, thus breaking up any sand clots or similar masses and inducing a movement on the part of the material towards the outlets. It has been found in actual use that with structures of this nature the movement of the locomotive will provide sufficient momentum to the pendulums to assure that the complete supply of the sand box is rendered available to the outlets or distributing mechanism and this is true even under the most unfavorable conditions of operation. The agitating device should ordinarily be applied adjacent the upper-or central portion of the housing. It may, of course, under special conditions be otherwise positioned and any desired number of pendulums might be included in the assembly aside from the fact that they might be supported or movably suspended in any number of obvious manners.

Moreover, numerous other changes in construction and rearrangement of the parts might be resorted to without departing from the spirit of theinvention as defined by the claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a sanding receptacle of a vehicle and which receptacle has a curved base portion extending downwardly and outwardly towards the sides of the vehicle, a plurality of pendulums movably mounted in said receptacle and to both sides of the center thereof, said pen dulums being spaced a distance such that no conflict between the same will occur as they oscillate incident to the natural movements of the vehicle.

2. In combination, a receptacle to contain material to be distributed and being formed with an opening in its upper surface, a pendulum to freely swing within said receptacle, and means extending in supporting relationship with respect to the edges of said opening for yieldingly mounting said pendulum against shocks in upward and downward directions.

3. In combination, a receptacle to contain material to be distributed and being formed with an opening in its upper surface, a pendulum to freely swing within said receptacle, and means extending in air tight contact with the edges of said opening for swingingly supporting said pendulum.

4. An agitating device for placement within a material containing receptacle for association with a vehicle and from which receptacle material is to be distributed, said agitating device including a bar and a plurality of freely swingable pendulum members supported by said bar, said members being spaced from each other so as not to materially conflict with each other during their swinging movements, and material-breaking edges forming a part of each of said members.

5. In combination a sanding receptacle for a vehicle and which receptacle has a curved base portion extending downwardly and outwardly towards the sides of the vehicle, tubes extending from points adjacent the lower ends of the base portion and through which sand is to be distributed, and said receptacle being formed with a charging opening in its upper surface and through which sand is received, a pendulum mounted within said receptacle adjacent said opening and to one side of the uppermost part of said curved base, said pendulum being spaced from said base and comprising a relatively heavy body presenting relatively sharp material-breaking edges adjacent its lower surface whereby as said pendulum oscillates' incident to the natural movements of the vehicle, any compact sand masses adjacent thereto are fragmented and tend to be diverted in granular form downwardly over the curved base of said receptacle, and towards one of said tubes.

CHARLES J. SCUDDER. 

